Jamie George has cautioned that Steve Borthwick's side must avoid being intimidated by New Zealand's formidable reputation if they aim to secure their first Twickenham victory over the visitors in 13 years this Saturday.
Squad Boost Before Crucial Fixture
England's head coach has received a timely boost with Elliot Daly returning to fitness and available for his first appearance since suffering an arm fracture on British & Irish Lions tour, while Freddie Steward and the wing featured in the 37-man squad revealed on Sunday night.
Current Form Contrasts with Previous Woes
England will welcome the All Blacks after stretching their unbeaten run to nine matches with a decisive comfortable victory over the Pacific Islanders, romping clear in the closing stages. Their current form marks a dramatic shift from a year ago, when England suffered multiple losses in seven matches, all by narrow margins. A trio of these losses were inflicted by New Zealand—two on the 2024 summer tour and a 24-22 loss at Twickenham after the fly-half failed with two late kicks.
New Zealand narrowly edged out the Scots on Saturday to maintain aspirations of a clean sweep intact, and though the Springboks secured their number one ranking, George described New Zealand as “perhaps the best side in the world.”
Of the last 11 encounters, the team's sole win over the All Blacks came in the global tournament semi, and New Zealand have not been beaten in the last five clashes at Twickenham.
George's Perspective on Playing the All Blacks
“Many sides tend to is stand in admiration of the All Blacks with their legacy and all their world-class players,” said former captain George. “It’s easy to do that. I have done it in the past. We must remember we’ll be back here at Allianz Stadium. We’re very proud to be playing here. We are going to do all we can to win that game.
“You have to be at your peak. New Zealand are arguably the best side in the world at the minute. They’re an unbelievably fantastic squad and they seem to raise a level when they visit Allianz Stadium. Our focus for us to do is identify where we could have been better in the opening period this week. Additionally, develop a defined strategy which can put them under as much stress as we are able to. If we do that, we’ll create a opportunity.
“We came under a lot of criticism last year for not coming out on the winning end of close contests and not finding a way to win. Now, we’re doing the complete reverse. By no means have we cracked it. But we’ve put a strong focus on the latter stages of games and closing games out. Scoring multiple tries in the final segment of that game is a sign of a quality team.”
Borthwick's Outlook and Team Changes
Borthwick is likely to make a several changes to his lineup, with captain the lock, Tom Curry, and the fly-half all set to be reinstated to the starting lineup. The wing and Immanuel Feyi-Waboso both took knocks against the Islanders but have been included in the group preparing to take on New Zealand.
“We aim to challenge ourselves against the top sides and [New Zealand] are among best teams,” said the head coach. “Our team is youthful, we’re developing, I think we’re improving rapidly and we’re keen to learn. So I’m sure next week’s will be a great assessment for us.”
The Star's Take on Growth
Ben Earl, in addition, believes that the team's present ability to break away in the dying minutes of games owes much to their triple close losses by New Zealand the previous year. “You feel battle-hardened, as if you’ve been through battles, you’ve developed the scar tissue to build on those setbacks, and they stung at the time,” said the back-rower, who was named man of the match against Fiji. “But I question among the squad in the changing room, would we have changed our path now, with the joy that we’re now enjoying? I’d be curious to know because I think they’re very, very valuable lessons.”
